Sharing a Bed for Beginners
by akaiciel
Summary: Kai's still a little uncomfortable with this whole intimacy thing - even though he's sharing a bed with Rei. ONE-SHOT, Kai/Rei fluff.


A/N: Well. After saying for quite so long that I didn't see myself writing anything but Takao/Max for a very long time, I've been struck with a Kai/Rei fluffbunny of great proportions. So... here it is. Hope you enjoy!   
  


**Sharing a Bed for Beginners**

  
  
As a child, Kai had never had to share anything. Everyone had enough, and what Kai had more of, he couldn't share with anyone - even if he had wanted to. However, as far as necessities went, meals were three, shoes were two, and beds fit one. That was all they needed, and the thought of wanting any more just for the sake of having it was a thought to be scorned.   
  
As an adult, he had been taken by surprise when he realised that any bed he bought would have to be large enough for two. On a rare shopping trip, he had discovered that what as a child would have been thought of as extravagance was termed a necessity by the members of the adult world. So, with a shrug and a word, the unnecessarily large bed was bought.   
  
He was taken even further by surprise when he realised that someone was willing to fill the extra space.   
  
However, it turned out that sharing a bed was one of the most difficult tasks he'd ever undertaken. Not the sex - on the contrary, sex was the least of his troubles, and a form of distraction he not only welcomed, but was grateful for. No, his problems came from the time inbetween, the time he couldn't account for.   
  
Kai had never wondered before what he looked like when he was asleep, but the thought that someone else knew better than he did unsettled him greatly, and he slept annoyingly lightly on the nights when Rei stayed over. What was worse was the fact that he often woke up and realised that Rei was already awake.   
  
The only possible way to avoid detection was to pretend not to have woken up until he was certain that Rei had fallen asleep. The only flaw with this was that there really was no way of being certain if Rei was really asleep; one of his favourite pastimes seemed to be lying very still, and there were too many incidents for comfort where Kai would think he was in the clear and sit up - only to find Rei's eyes firmly fixed on him. It was embarrassing, and he would end up launching into a kiss of pure desperation, using sex as a distraction tactic.   
  
The fact is that there was a certain Moment that Kai was determined to avoid. It was the moment in films and books where the young lovers would discuss their relationship and fall asleep in a tender embrace... Kai was dreading this moment, and shuddered at the prospect alone. Not only did he have no idea what he would have to offer to such a discussion, but it was a nightmare of his to wake up with Rei sprawled over him and clinging on like ivy, the ball and chain personified.   
  
However, as the nights continued to be free of both discussion and embrace, Kai became confused, and more than a little curious. In the absence of any heart-to-hearts or Rei-shaped dents on his chest, Kai had to wonder what else might be in store for him instead. No matter how much he lay awake and stared at the sleeping boy next to him, he couldn't figure it out, and wished the answer would just appear on the perfectly-formed back he gazed at night after night.   
  
Rei always slept on his front, head resting on folded arms. On cold nights, he would curl up into a tighter ball than Kai thought humans could possibly make, but for the most part, he stretched out on his stomach, looking perfectly serene.   
  
And beautiful. Beauty was something that it had taken Kai a long time to appreciate, and while the idea that it could be applied to a fully-grown man had been initially an idea to be scoffed at, it wasn't long before his thoughts turned traitor and declared Rei the most beautiful thing he had ever seen in his life.   
  
And so it was that on one quiet night - after being as certain as he could be that Rei was fully asleep - Kai found himself reaching out and gently placing a hand on Rei's back.   
  
He stayed there for a moment, hardly daring to move. Rei's comfortable breathing and his own uncomfortable heartbeat were the only things Kai could hear. Tentatively, he took in how warm Rei's flesh was, and how taut it felt. How nice it felt. The only other times he had ever touched Rei's back were during sex (where his nails did most of the work) or when a shirt was in the way. Just this, absorbing the feel of his skin - it was something new.   
  
Feeling daring and awkward, annoyed and confused, he slowly began to move his hand, noticing how dry and soft the skin felt as he rubbed it lightly. It was such a platonic action that almost without noticing, he moved his hand further around the back, varying his touch and direction as he explored this fresh new territory of his.   
  
He practically felt his blood chill when he realised that under several strands of floppy black hair, Rei's eyes were open, and looking straight at him.   
  
Instantly, Kai snapped his hand away, getting as much distance between it and Rei's back as possible. In the stretched moments that followed, he felt himself tighten as he waited for the dreaded question...   
  
"Why did you stop?"   
  
Kai's eyes widened slightly; this was something he hadn't expected. Having to explain what he was doing, that was expected, but to be asked why he wasn't still doing it...   
  
"You're awake," he pointed out, a little more brusquely than he'd intended.   
  
"Well, it'd be wasted if I wasn't," Rei said simply. "But that was your plan, right?"   
  
"How long have you been awake?" Kai murmured, ignoring the rhetorical question and closing the gap between them to initiate a kiss.   
  
He found his lips meet unanticipated rigidity as Rei stuck his hand in the way. As Kai's brow furrowed, Rei pressed his fingers down, clamping the intruding hand firmly over Kai's mouth.   
  
"What are you doing?" Kai asked in a muffled voice. Rei smiled.   
  
"Stopping you from changing the subject the same way you always do," he said sweetly, and Kai's heart sank. This was it. They were going to have the long-dreaded Discussion. He swallowed, then cursed as he realised Rei could feel that little piece of nervousness.   
  
Sharply, he drew his head back and shuffled away, not quite sure where to look now that Rei had cut off his only avenue of escape.   
  
"Look, Kai, it's the middle of the night, and frankly, you're not letting me sleep at all, so I'm really kind of tired," Rei said plaintively, causing Kai to colour slightly. "I really, really don't want a deep and meaningful conversation right now-"  
  
"You don't?"   
  
Kai couldn't help it; as tended to happen around Rei, he found himself unable to keep on the mask he wore for everyone else, and was incapable of hiding his surprise at this revelation.   
  
Rei stared incredulously. "Of course not, it's the middle of the night!" He suddenly looked apprehensive. "Why, do you?"   
  
Seeing his own fear mirrored in Rei's face, it struck Kai that maybe they weren't quite as different as he'd always assumed they were.   
  
"I guess we could talk if you want to," Rei continued dubiously, "But seriously, I'm beat, so-"  
  
"Rei, you have no idea how much I don't want to talk to you!" Kai said firmly, and was treated to a smile of sleepy relief.   
  
"Well then, if you don't want to talk and I don't want to talk, how about I go back to sleep and you just keep on doing what you were doing?" Rei mumbled, closing his eyes once again. "That was really, _really_ nice."   
  
After an uncertain pause, Kai placed his hand on Rei's back - and found that it felt exactly the same as it had three minutes before. It was just as soft, just as smooth, and just as easy to touch. Encouraged, he picked up where he left off, and was soon caught up in drawing lazy patterns on the canvas that was Rei's back.   
  
Suddenly, he heard a low, quiet sound that took him a few moments to track down. Once he did-   
  
"But people can't purr!" he muttered, voice laced with disbelief.   
  
"My people can, when they're totally relaxed," Rei informed Kai, opening his eyes to grin sheepishly. "I guess I've been a little tense around you."   
  
Kai nodded. _Guess that makes two of us_, he thought, thoroughly unimpressed with himself.   
  
It wasn't long before Rei's purr faded back in, and Kai's attention turned to his own niggling contemplations.   
  
Affectionate. He was being affectionate. He tried to remember what other affectionate things he'd done so far, but all his examples seemed to require "could be considered" or "in a manner of speaking" to be included in the description.   
  
On an impulse, he shifted around until he was in a position to press his lips against the back he now knew better than his own, giving the chastest kiss of his life to date.   
  
Then, unusually for Kai, he acted on a second impulse in as many minutes. Slowly, haltingly, he rested his chin on that same back, watching the movements of his hand close up. For some time he remained in that position, enjoying the feel of the tingle on his fingertips, the vibrations from the purring and the continuing warmth of Rei's back. He tilted his head until it was his cheek he was resting on, and suddenly realised that this was the most comfortable position he'd ever been in.   
  
He fell asleep that way. He had suspected he might, as his hand's movements grew less and less sure, and his eyelids grew more and more unwilling to stay open. Soon they had been closed, his hand still, and his arm and head resting easily in a manner that, on a child, would look as if he intended to slip his fingers into his mouth halfway through the night.   
  
The next morning, Rei woke up aware of a weight on his back. As he blinked away the thickness of somnolence, he realised what had happened. He could hear even breathing, feel Kai's mop of hair move slightly in the process, and was almost certain that there was a hand resting on his shoulder.   
  
Even if he could have moved, he would have remained still, trying to imprint this moment on his memory in case it never happened again.   
  
He pretended to be asleep when he felt Kai wake up, deciding to wait until the other boy was out of bed before he made his own appearance; if Kai was made to feel uncomfortable about this, he might never do it again, and that was the last thing Rei wanted.   
  
"Rei."   
  
In between being startled and trying to figure out whether or not he should pretend to wake up, Rei felt a tug on his ponytail.   
  
"Ow!"   
  
"I knew you were awake."   
  
Rei noted sourly that Kai sounded just a little more amused than he would have liked. "How?" he asked, trying to twist himself around to make eye contact.   
  
"Your heartbeat. Too fast for sleep." If Rei hadn't known any better, he would have sworn the next sound he heard was a contented sigh. "Maybe this way of sleeping has some advantages after all," Kai mused, giving Rei's ponytail another gentle pull.   
  
_Yes_, Rei thought with an unseen smile, _Maybe it does_.   
  



End file.
